


Du Coeur

by Nikoshinigami



Series: The Parts That Bind [2]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Drama, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-07
Updated: 2016-03-11
Packaged: 2018-05-25 08:46:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6187939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nikoshinigami/pseuds/Nikoshinigami
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Light Origin Spoilers</p><p>Defeating Hawkmoth was only the beginning. Now Ladybug is challenged with the most impossible task she'd ever imagined: saving Adrien Agreste.</p><p>Sequel to Du Sang</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another terrible title and another terrible description. Not intending this one to be bloody but I'll check the boxes if we steer back in that direction again. Should be a bit heavier in the romance this time through.

His room felt hollow.

Sitting up in his bed against a small wall of pillows, Adrien could not concentrate on the book he was reading or the even the letters which put words on each page. Everything was quiet in a way that was both familiar and haunting; everything was dull as though seen unfocused through a fogged lens. This life was far too familiar to go on unnoticed. This was what life had been like before discovering the miraculous. This was what life was now like in the absence of Plagg.

It hurt. Even if Plagg was lazy and selfish, even if he did ignore duty in favor of naps and cheese, he'd been Adrien's constant companion for months. His normal, quiet, independent behavior meant Adrien often forgot the kwami wasn't somewhere in the room by himself. It took hours sometimes to remember the silence wasn't something he needed to protect towards the effort of not interrupting his rest. Things were quiet because Adrien was alone. Like he'd always been. Like he was used to being. Like he never wanted to be again.

There was nothing he could do about it. Ever since he'd been brought back home from the hospital, visitors had been discouraged from visiting. Nino texted to tell him he tried. A sleep mask from Marinette came with no note or follow up but was delivered unwrapped by Nathalie. No one for any reason was allowed to come in except for those deemed necessary or those already employed in the house. Just tutors and bodyguards and physicians, cooks, and maids. Never his father. That face, at least, he hadn't had to look upon yet either. Which meant the silence of his room was far more than just a peaceful absence of noise. It was patient, chilling dread masked only in its own impending calamity.

He'd more or less attempted patricide. He'd more or less accepted a martyr's fate. There was nothing good to look forward to and the longer his father waited to speak to him, the worse the conversation in Adrien's head went.

Adrien supposed it was too much to hope that being stripped of his power would bring his father to his senses. It certainly hadn't done Adrien himself any good.

He tried again at reading from the start of the page, reading on a few more words than last time before the sounds in his brain became indistinct thoughts that did not follow the book's narrative in the slightest. He couldn't concentrate like this. He was going crazy being confined once more in solitude. His phone's battery was dead, though, and no one cared much to help him charge it. The cord to do so was surely somewhere on his desk. It was a matter of hierarchy in the orders which kept the screen now permanently dark. First no visitors, and in the end no messages as well. It was by his father's command, of that he had no doubt. Neither was he really all that surprised to find himself punished even in a state like this.

Adrien set the book down in his lap with a sigh, his eyes scanning the room for something to improve upon his mood. His computer was off. His tablet was... somewhere. There were pills at his bedside and water to assist in swallowing them but nothing waiting for him to enjoy. He was expected to sleep, it seemed. Sleep and eat and read quietly until the silence and drugs put him to sleep once more. It was a wretched cycle he'd already fallen into over the three days he'd been home. Moving around so much on day one, he hadn't contested it. Filled with dread, he'd nearly assigned sleep as his own escape on day two. Now he was bored. Now he felt the emptiness without companionship to the point where he almost willed his father to come. Confrontation was unavoidable, after all. Even conflict would be better than being ignored.

He wondered what Plagg was doing and if he was enjoying himself with Ladybug and the other kwami now. He didn't want to consider he might be happier this way. It was too real a possibility, and he didn't need to feel abandoned here as well. Ladybug had said they wouldn't simply go on without him. No villain meant no need for heroes, though. Her words were nice but the promises were mostly empty. Neither of them wanted it to end this way, but it had ended. So... what more was there, really, other than wishes and lingering regrets?

The door to his bedroom opened without a knock, which instantly put Adrien on edge. He placed the book down in his lap, finding his hands already trembling slightly against the shiny finish of the paperback's cover. Everyone knocked, even when they at first thought he might be asleep. He could think of only one person who tended to walk in as though he owned the place. Because he did. And the moment he rounded the skate ramp, Adrien knew he had been right to freeze as even his blood ran cold.

Gabriel Agreste's cane tapped the ground with each step, the standard aid prescribed by the hospital changed out for something stylish in the weeks since his release. The bruises had healed and even the soft cast and sling Adrien had been seen in interviews were no more. He looked like his father always had: foreboding and unconcerned. But he was slow and quiet, like a predator approaching his prey. Adrien tried to covertly take a deep breath to calm himself. Whatever this was going to be, it was certainly unavoidable now.

Which was why it seemed better to start off on the offensive. There could be books written on the volumes of information they now knew and still did not know about each other. It was best to skip to the chase and avoid the parts that hurt the most--the parts that pretended to be normal or to care. "I don't have it," he said, knowing what his father truly cared about these days. It certainly wasn't him.

Gabriel nodded, both hands planted on the polished globe atop his cane. "I know you don't," he confessed, offering nothing further as he seemed to stand and discriminately observe.

"So.. what's this, then?" Adrien asked, gesturing to his father's very presence in his room which hadn't even been normal before. "You never came to the hospital so why are you here now?"

"What I wanted to say was not fit to speak of in a hospital."

Adrien tried not to wince, pursing his lips instead as he grit his teeth. "No. I don't suppose it would be."

His father shook his head, his own chest filling out with deep breaths as his face abandoned its usual blanket of scorn for something far more human. He looked angry. He looked furious. The level of emotion on his face was almost enough to make Adrien proud. He was used to being scowled at on the many times he'd disappointed him but never before had he found himself having awoken this much fury.

"Do you have any idea how close that was?" Gabriel demanded, his own hands clenching in their grip not unlike Adrien's own fingers against his book.

Adrien looked away, crossing his arms to hide the evidence of their mutual affliction. "Yeah, you almost had us. Can't say I'm sorry things didn't go that way."

"You almost died, you idiot!"

Adrien winced, hearing all at once the pain in his father's voice that only seemed to mock him. He turned his head back towards his father, finding his own fury rising to the surface. "That's as much your fault as mine!" he shouted, not to be the only one to blame in their mutual theatrics. "You-you- _you_ put that thing inside me!"

"As insurance!" the elder bellowed with a thump of his cane for emphasis. "When I had the powers of your combined miraculous, I could have ensured everything was as it should be! I had medical professionals performing in a sterile environment while you and your idiot partner played operation god knows where and with god knows what! And now look at you!"

Adrien's jaw ached with the tension building in his joints from his firmly gritted teeth.

Gabriel continued to shake his head, looming over his son with barely contained rage. "Is this some sort of as yet unheard of branch of teen angst in which self mutilation becomes a team sport?"

"We did what we had to do to defeat you!" Adrien shouted, hating that he had to loop up at him to glare. "You're the one who decided to be a villain! You're the one who made things have to be this way! I was a hero! It was my job to do everything I could to stop you! And I did! I'm not sorry for any of it. I'd do it all again in a heartbeat!"

His father eyed him, unimpressed. "You should have been on my side," he said, as though the option had been given and turned aside.

Even if it had been, Adrien's answer would have been the same. "Never."

"Even though it would have brought your mother back?"

Adrien faltered for a moment, then scowled at this new heartlessness that would dare to bring _her_ into things. "I don't believe you."

"Your kwami never told you about the true power of your miraculous?" Gabriel asked mockingly.

"Haven't you noticed?" Adrien asked with a taunting smile. "I destroy things."

Gabriel shook his head. "Only as one part of a whole. Together, the Ladybug and Cat Noir miraculous give god-like abilities to their holder."

It was strange that his father should know something like that when he did not. But it helped explain his obsession as well. Why else would he have been so set on getting their miraculous when he had one of his own? Had the Butterfly kwami made up a story about fake powers? Or had Plagg not told him everything there was to know about being Cat Noir? Adrien wasn't sure which seemed more possible. But even Ladybug hadn't seemed to think there was anything more special about their powers than the ability to create and to destroy. If she'd known about god-like powers, he was pretty sure he could think of a couple times she might have used it. Like now. While she did indeed possess them both. The power to make his life better wasn't exactly something he felt she would be hesitant to do. 

Unless there was a catch. Unless there was some reason why someone would want Ladybug and Cat Noir instead of scouting out one person who could control the power of both. "At what price?" he asked, trying not to show his own ignorance if it were true or his gullibility if it were all a lie.

"Any price would be enough to pay to bring your mother back, would it not?"

Adrien shook his head. "I don't doubt you feel that way." His shoulders felt heavy like lead, pulling him back into his pillows. "With all the villains you made of my classmates, knowing I was there, not knowing I was your enemy... You accepted the fact from the beginning that whatever happened to even your own son didn't matter so long as you got what you wanted."

"I would have made it all right in the end," Gabriel explained with the hubris of a Greek parable.

Adrien took a deep breath, feeling his muscles still shaky with contempt. "I guess we'll never know."

"We will if you get me those miraculous," he unsurprisingly declared.

Of course he wasn't ready to give up. Of course he still thought he could use Adrien to get what he wanted. "If I ever see Ladybug again, I'll be lucky," he explained, wishing it was a lie rather than the truth. "She has no reason to have anything to do with me. And every reason to avoid me thanks to you."

"You think she'll abandon you that easily?" Gabriel asked, his tone incredulous as though, of all things, he'd chosen to notice the depth of their bond.

"I think we both know she's smart enough to know that's what she has to do."

"If you asked her--"

"I'm done talking about this," Adrien spat, the book long gone as his fingers tightened against the soft folds of his comforter.

Gabriel stood taller, looking down on him with mild surprise and indignation. "Fine. But you're grounded until I say otherwise," he concluded. 

Adrien sighed, rolling his eyes as he muttered "What's new?"

The cane cracked against the floor with a heavy hit, the new walking aid an aid to his expression as well as it made Adrien jump far more than any raising of his voice. "Work on that attitude, young man. I'm permitting you to return to school on Monday but I can take that away just as quickly."

Adrien knew exactly why he wanted him to be seen again in public and as much as he longed to be with his friends again, the thought of being used made other choices almost more palatable. "Then just do it. All I have left in life is the ability to make you as miserable as you've made me," he spat, his heart breaking even as he forced himself to accept the consequences of such a challenge.

"I'm not a fan of these dramatics, Adrien. Grow up," his father admonished, turning away and walking to the door with the step-tap of an injured gait.


	2. Chapter 2

Marinette had read and cut out every article on the Agreste tragedy. The official story made everything sound so much more innocent than it had been that night. Father and son had been discussing remodeling an attic room for his own design space. Decayed floor boards had sent them both falling with Adrien being cut deeply by a wooden plank as they fell. It was deemed a miracle they had both survived with so little in the way of injuries. They were partially right--it was miraculous--but she doubted any of the reporters had wondered at the mystery enough to suspect anything more of the fashion giant and his young modeling son.

There had been no super villains since then. No need for Ladybug. Alya had been both glad and disappointed to point out the quiet over Paris in the past few weeks. Nothing seemed the same since that night and Marinette almost waited in dread for a correlation to be made. But if they thought it, no one said it out loud. What had happened to Gabriel and Adrien was a serious misfortune no one felt a desire to add to with paranoid suspicion. Or perhaps Marinette was simply worried over nothing. Why would anyone suspect the Agreste's would have anything to do with Hawk Moth? It was silly to worry, but worrying was currently what she did. She went to school, she looked through magazines and newspapers, and through it all she worried.

Nino worried. Alya worried. Even Chloe, someone Marinette could not stand in most cases, was calmer in light of her own concerns towards the empty chair in the front row. Even as his absence became the new normal, it was hard to just ignore it. His face was literally everywhere else except for where it should have been. They all saw pictures of him on a daily basis. No one heard from him, though. No one knew what had happened since he'd left the hospital. Normal people couldn't just sneak inside and check up on him in the middle of the night. And super people couldn't do it either, because like maps of old, there there be monsters.

Sitting behind the empty seat was almost more distracting than sitting behind Adrien had ever been before. Before she might get a tiny bit distracted by noticing he'd gotten highlights put in his hair or just noticing he had nice hair in general to be honest. Now it was just... nothing. There was nothing to notice. Which meant he would always be that crumpled body in her minds eye, still as death and bleeding out while she held on to his hand.

Miss Bustier was used to a rambunctious class and, for the most part, that much hadn't changed. Somber as many of them were, they were still themselves with lives that very much went on regardless of other concerns. Marinette smiled as their teacher took to the front of the class, ushering them all to settle in and quiet down as she waited patiently. 

"I have an important announcement this morning," she said, trying to entice them to attention while Alix and Kim continued to goad each other in the back. "We have a student returning today whom I know you are all very excited to see. I would ask that you please remain in your seats and be considerate of the fact that we are in class to learn and not visit. I would like to see you all on your best behavior. Understood?"

Marinette's attention was immediately torn between Miss Bustier and the door. There was only one person she could think of who she could be talking about and the idea of it made her pulse race. Adrien was coming back! Adrien was going to be at school today! It seemed off she would make the announcement like that rather than Adrien simply show up but Marinette imagined with all the recent news and his general celebrity status most of this was probably going to be rather hush-hush. What did it matter, though? Adrien was going to be sitting in front of her again! 

Out the window towards the walkway, Marinette could see the burly form of his bodyguard approaching, putting right all her suspicions even as a voice in the back of her mind tried to speak up and be heard. Why was his bodyguard there? Why would Gabriel demand the extra protection? They were silly thoughts that didn't matter so long as it was Adrien who was returning to class. But the bodyguard wasn't just patrolling the halls, he was coming towards them. In less than a minute, he was opening the door, his huge hulking form intimidating even from a short distance.

"Thank you," she heard Adrien's voice declare despite her not having noticed him in the hall. She leaned forward in her seat, expecting him to step out from behind the Goliath holding the door, only to find herself frozen with goose-pimpled flesh as her friend rolled into the room.

He was in a chair. A chair on wheels. A wheelchair. He wasn't walking. None of the newspapers or magazines had said anything about that. 

"Welcome back, Adrien," Miss Bustier said, breaking the uncomfortable murmuring silence that rattled with whispers and the shifting of eyes.

He looked... good. She guessed. Much better than he had on the floor of his home and better still than surrounded in the sterile whiteness of his hospital room. His eyes were wide and his cheeks were rosy. He looked as he should look in so many grateful ways. Except for the fancy black wheelchair that sparkled with platinum decals. Designer. Expensive. Terrifyingly perfect for his image rather than a sore thumb to temporarily contend with.

Adrien smiled nervously, his right hand pulling at the side of his neck, looking painfully self-conscious at the front of the room. "Sorry to be so late. Had, uh... some trouble with the elevator."

"That's quite alright," Miss Bustier accepted with a smile. "It's very good to see you back with us. Is there anything you'd like to say before we begin class?"

He nodded quickly even though Marinette could tell the last thing he wanted was to be the center of attention right now. "Um... Well, thank you for all the cards and flowers. It meant a lot. And, uh... I'm fine now. Really. Ignore...this. So... yeah." He looked back up at Miss Bustier as though to make sure that had been enough, that it was okay for this part to be over now.

She put a hand to his shoulder, her smile brief and kind. "You're very welcome, Adrien. I know we're all very happy to have you back. You can take your seat now... Oh." She seemed to realize at much the same time Marinette did that even the first desk was set up on a platform. Adrien wouldn't be able to get to his normal spot. He wouldn't be able to get to any desk for that matter.

"No worries. I've got it covered," he said, wheeling himself quickly to the edge of the first platform near Nino and away from center stage. From the side of his chair a small partisan folded out, extending from the armrest to become a tabletop above his lap. From his bag which was slung over the back of the chair he pulled out his tablet and was ready to begin. His smile was near perfect as everyone continued to stare. It felt like a shared eternity for class to begin.

The real eternity was waiting for it to be over, though. As Miss Bustier spoke and discussed literary tropes, all Marinette could do was try to secretly observe Adrien without rudely staring at him below. A wheelchair! He was in a wheelchair! Her heart and mind were terrified with the implications, the more sinister thoughts not above suspecting the former Hawk Moth of foul play in retribution. Crazy thoughts, she knew, but so much more important to consider than the symbolic importance of white and black in narrative. She just wanted the day to go by and bring the lunch hour closer. Even if he'd never tell her everything as plain Marinette, there was still so much she needed to hear from him that she knew the others did too.

Like Nino, who looked... it was hard to describe. Hurt? Sad? A mixture of both? It was easy to tell this had come as much of a surprise to him as well. Had anyone known if even he hadn't been told? It just didn't seem right coming from Adrien. He was secretive, yes, but genuinely respected his friends. This was big. This was something he would have had to have dealt with on his own if not with them. And even now, where he once would have been surrounded with friends, he was still held apart from them the by necessity. 

Lunch could not come soon enough. 

The hours felt stagnant and long.

With lunch came Chloe, though, and everyone else for that matter. Everyone had questions and customary well wishes while the bratty ringleader mourned his mobility to his face as though his health were an affront to her beauty standards. Good intentioned though it may have been, Marinette's skin crawled with every high pitched whine about how perfect he used to be and how tragic the whole thing was. Adrien just smiled and shrugged, thanking those who were glad to see him, the stress of it evident in the tightness of his lips.

At least his bodyguard seemed to have good sense. He cleared the room easily with nothing but his presence alone, his looming shadow over Adrien enough to make even Ivan scuttle away.

Adrien held him back, though, as Nino scooted in closer. His friend didn't seem to be discouraged by the giant-size man anyway. "Why didn't you tell me you were in a wheelchair, dude? It doesn't matter but, ya know... I'd have been waiting out front to help or something," he said, nervously tugging on one sleeve as though perhaps Adrien's reluctance to clue him in was a sign of their faltering friendship.

Marinette felt terrible for him. For both of them. None of this was going to be easy.

Adrien frowned softly, anxiously rubbing at the back of his neck again. "I was hoping I wouldn't still be in one by now," he said, looking down at his own lap.

The taller boy nodded, the entire exchange somewhat painful to observe. "Yeah? So, like... why are you? Are you, like... paralyzed?"

"No," Adrien was quick to correct. "No, I'm fine. I promise. It's-it's stupid, really."

Alya leaned against her boyfriend's shoulders, silent support given even in the presence of her curiosity. "Okay. So what's up?" she asked, never one to miss out on a scoop.

Adrien looked at all three of them, his eyes lingering on Marinette in a way that made her heart skip a beat, before letting out a long sigh and looking up at the ceiling with a frown. "It's just, uh... I uh.. I had a pretty bad infection and it sort of... messed stuff up. Nerve damage type stuff. Which sounds worse than it is. Really, it's just like... weak legs. Or something. They said it can last as little as a few weeks. And it doesn't hurt. Feels sort of like my legs are asleep. I mean, I can feel and stuff. I just can't... do... anything," he explained, his face slightly red as though the whole thing were a huge embarrassment rather than its potentially serious appearance.

"And that'll be okay in a few weeks?" Nino asked, sounding doubtful but surprised. It was a very nice wheelchair for just a few weeks of use. Maybe rich people were like that, but Adrien wasn't generally party to grandiose expense.

"Yeah," Adrien replied, nodding restlessly under their stare. "Or... or months. Few months maybe," he corrected as though their eyes pressed him to continue.

"But not, like, years?"

"It's... it's a big range," he admitted, looking more uncomfortable by the minute. His fingers drummed against his thighs then stopped as he forced a smile. "I have some modeling jobs lined up. Mostly portrait shoots but a couple full figure too. Doesn't look like it's going to be a big deal all things considered. I'm not worried about it."

Nino put a hand against his shoulder, much to the annoyance of the bodyguard standing watch, and gave him a reassuring squeeze. "Hey, I bet we can find all kinds of perks to the chair bit. What are you doing after school?"

"Uh... going home," Adrien answered, the change in topic still doing nothing to alleviate the awkwardness in his body language. "Father doesn't want me wandering Paris. Too much excitement. Sort of grounded I guess you could say."

"He's not going to go back to hiding you away, is he?" Nino asked, voicing a concern shared by all four of them no doubt.

Adrien nibbled on his bottom lip, his eyes flashing towards his bodyguard. "No," he said simply, then thrust his hand into his backpack with the haste of sudden remembrance. "Oh! Marinette, I almost forgot. That book you let me borrow? I've got it right here. Sorry I've had it for so long. If you have any others, though, I promise I'll be more timely in returning them." He held out a small paperback with a well creased spine, the cover not something she was familiar with and most certainly had never lent out.

She took it from him, confused by his words but spurned on by the pleading look in his bright green eyes. _The Confusions of Young Törless_ the title proclaimed. As she peeled the book open, the hint of lined paper folded up inside stood out against the aged, beige pages within. A note. A secret note. She closed the book and nodded firmly, quickly tucking it into her own bag. "I'll have a look around and see if I have anything else," she lied, playing along under the eyes of Gabriel Agreste's hired man.

Adrien relaxed slightly at that, his hand pulling down on the chair's break as his fingers moved to bring him to motion. "Thank you, Marinette," he said gently as he lead the way for them to leave the classroom at last.


	3. Chapter 3

The note in the book may as well have been made of fire rather than paper. It burned on the edges of Marinette's senses through the rest of the day, coming back to her attention as though heralded by smoke. Everything about school was even less important than it had been before the unborrowed book was placed in her care. Attention was short for most of her fellow students, though. It wasn't every day the classroom got its very own security detail in the presence of Adrien's bodyguard. Or that a classmate came back not as he left and with minimal interest in indulging on its cause.

He left before everyone else did, his bodyguard not allowing Adrien to wait around even those few more minutes more before everyone else would get out too. Nino lamented the sight of the car driving away but Marinette wondered if it wasn't perhaps all for the best. People would stare, after all. It wasn't entirely voyeuristic; this was someone they knew and were genuinely concerned about. Even Chloe. But it was probably a bit hard on one's pride to be picked up, carried, or moved around when everyone else could enter a car without assistance. As much as Marinette wanted to hang around and talk to Alya and Nino about the things they hadn't said when Adrien was present--nothing gossipy but of their hidden concerns that hadn't melded well with a forced optimistic outlook--the note continued to beckon her attention. She ran as she waved, knowing at the very least they would misunderstand and take her swift escape as emotionally driven rather than hastened by curiosity's sake.

There were quick kisses to her parents but nothing leading into conversation, nothing to stall her from her hurried escape up towards her bedroom and sanctuary. Even Tikki in her purse seemed eager for the privacy as she popped out on the last of the stairs.

"What do you think's in the note?" she asked, either reading Marinette's mind or just as curious as she was. Marinette shrugged, her mind too full to guess, as she pushed open the door to her room.

She tossed her school bag onto the chaise lounge, a heavy throw covering up the blood stain that thus far had not been discovered. The book was in her hand as though attracted there by magnets and before her butt had even found her rolling chair, the folded notebook paper inside was in her palm. Two folded squares, she realized. Adrien had enclosed two notes, both of which were addressed to her. To be fair, one of them read 'To Ladybug' but semantics mattered little in the end.

At least it seemed to suggest he still didn't suspect. And even if he did, his actions made it quite clear he was good at keeping secrets like this. There was disappointment though. Marinette wasn't sure if she was disappointed because she seemed destined to be courier or because he hadn't somehow worked it out. Either way, she had two letters to read now, and her heart was protesting every second she waited to begin.

She unfolded the one to Marinette first, reading quietly out loud to Tikki's benefit as the kwami settled down on her shoulder to see.

_Marinette,_

_Sorry about this. I know you never asked for this, and that I shouldn't make assumptions, but if you could do this one last favor it would mean the world to me. You were so clever when you made that signal on your window to get Ladybug's attention. I'd try it myself but I don't think her visiting me at my home would be the best idea. But I need to tell her something and I don't know how else to do it. I trust you, Marinette. You've always been there for me. If you could give the other letter to Ladybug somehow, I'd be forever in your debt._

_Please don't read it. I trust you with what I wrote just as much as I trust you to get it to Ladybug but it's just more than you really want to know. Honestly, I really wish you and I could talk more about what happened that night but with my bodyguard on watch, it'd be hard. Ladybug saved my life, though. And since you were the one who brought her to me, you saved my life too. Thank you. I'm sorry you won't ever get more recognition for it but Ladybug and Cat Noir know which is pretty awesome I think._

_Thank you, Marinette. You're a good friend. A great friend. I am so lucky to have you._

_~Adrien_

Marinette reread parts to herself, trying not to feel too thrilled at the idea he thought of her when he needed help in desperation. Yes, she'd done this for him before and yes she knew more about the specifics of that time long ago than anyone else but it still made her feel a little special to know it was in some part due to trust. In other situations, she might have been spurned to daydreams at the thought of Adrien Agreste confiding in her of all people and the romantic bonds such a relationship could grow. It was almost sobering to find herself not thinking those thoughts for once, even as a quick aside. More than anything, she just wanted to be useful to him. It was nice to know that as Marinette, she could report back she had been successful in her task. Ladybug had his note for her. He couldn't have picked a better means of delivery.

The other note scared her though. Even before Adrien had been released from the hospital, Marinette had spent late nights trying to think of ways to help him with his father or to otherwise return the black cat miraculous to him. She'd come up with nothing. She knew there had to be a way but even the kwami had nothing to add. Adrien lived with his father and his father might still desire the miraculous. Now finding Adrien infirm as well, Marinette had even less reason to believe he could guard the possession. So what if he asked for it back? As far as she was concerned, it belonged to him; she'd stolen it. Even if she didn't think it was the right idea, did she have the right to deny him?

Marinette stared at the second note, unsure how to continue but knowing that she must. She forced herself to simply flatten out the folds and hold the page out, trying not to skip ahead where keywords popped out in black against the white backdrop.

_My Lady,_

_He still wants them. He thinks they could be used to bring my mom back. As long as he believes that, he's never going to stop trying to get them. I need you to know it's okay to replace me. He's not able to be a real threat anymore but maybe someday there will be something new to protect Paris from. Don't do it alone out of misguided respect. Replace me. I'll always wish it were me, but I'd feel better knowing you had a partner at your side. They'll never be as cool as me, of course, but I know you'll find a way to make do. You always have._

_I wish we could do this in person, but that's impossible now. Regardless, I need to say goodbye. I have a new mission and it's to make sure he never finds you. He's putting me back in the public eye with school and ad campaigns to try and draw you out. He wants to use our friendship against you to manipulate you into doing what he wants. The ends will always justify the means to him. That said, I'm safe. And someday I'll be able to move out. Until then, I can at least be of some use to you by never again seeking you out. I'm so glad I don't know your identity. You were right; it was for the best. So please forget that you know mine and ignore anything to do with Adrien Agreste. I promise you I'm okay. I can handle this on my own. I have good friends and even if he takes me away from them, it's still nothing I haven't dealt with before._

_I didn't mean to write a long letter. Sorry. Also, I will always love you. More than anyone in this world. As much as I need for you to forget about me for now, I hope maybe someday, when I'm an adult all on my own, I will see you again. So, I guess, please don't forget about me forever. I'll never forget you._

_Yours Eternal,  
 ~~Cat Noir~~ Adrien Agreste_

_P.S. If you see him, tell Plagg I miss him and that I hope the next hero he teams up with gives him all the Camembert he can dream of._

Marinette's hands were shaking by the time she got to the end. Quietly, she put the page down against her lap, fighting off the urge to crumple it into a ball and throw it across the room in impotence.

She'd promised him there would be no goodbye. She swore she'd keep him safe and he wouldn't be abandoned. But she still had no idea how to act on any of those words. All she knew was that he was logically right even if it was emotionally painful. There was nothing she could do about the affairs of a father and his son. He was alone in this no matter what she wanted to believe. This just wasn't a job anymore for Ladybug.

"What are you going to do?" Tikki asked, hovering at her side with her antenna lying flat.

Marinette shook her head slowly, her eyes still focused only on the note. "I don't know, Tikki. I don't... I don't know that I can do anything. Even if all I did was talk to the police to try and get him away from his dad legally, there's no evidence that would suggest Gabriel's a threat. Besides that, he's rich and well connected. And it would just make things harder on Adrien. The only thing that's going to help Adrien over the next three years is Gabriel getting what he wants."

Tikki nodded gently, her frown putting creases between her eyes.

It was odd to say the least. ' _He thinks they could be used to bring my mom back_ ' she reread, understand for perhaps the first time what it was that made their enemy fight. Was this just something he'd said in trying to manipulate Adrien? Had he misunderstood their powers? Did he know something she didn't? It seemed far and away an impossible feat and yet he had made a point to tell them both they didn't know the power they possessed.

Marinette looked at Tikki, her sweet face pinched in shared concern. It was hard to imagine Tikki lying to her about the scope of her abilities. She had the power to create anything but nothing lasted forever. Could that power bring someone back, though? It seemed silly in a way but not enough so not to ask. "If he had the miraculous, could he really bring his wife back?"

Tikki's frown deepened as she settled on the desktop. "It's not quite as easy as that," she said, which was certainly not a no.

"If that's all he wants, if that's all it would take to end this for everyone, then what's the harm in giving the miraculous to him and letting him do it?"

The kwami sighed, her usual bubbliness still masked under the worry of her heart. "I think... no one sets out to be a bad person. But people who make selfish decisions and seek power, no matter what good they wish to do with it, are the people most likely to do harm," she explained without really explaining anything. She rose from the desk again, floating closer to Marinette's face. "If you give him what he wants, are you able to accept your responsibility for his actions?"

"I don't know, Tikki," Marinette admitted, though there was doubt now where certainty had once been. "I don't know that I can just leave Adrien to deal with this alone either, though."

"He's not alone. He still has you, Marinette."

"But he doesn't know what the means." She stood up from her chair, needing to pace around, her anxiety filling her with dread. She'd thought she'd understood exactly what it meant to be in a no win situation but things were only getting more and more complicated the more she tried to reason a way through. Give Gabriel Agreste the miraculous, save Adrien, potentially harm Paris or even the world. Ignore Gabriel Agreste, keep Paris and the world safe for certain, but leave Adrien's fate a miserable mystery. It wasn't fair that there had to be a choice between one person's happiness and everyone else's. Especially when the person giving her permission to sacrifice his was the boy who meant the most to her.

"Perhaps Ladybug and Adrien should try and talk things through," Tikki suggested, trying to help in any way she could.

Marinette nodded though it was more a conditioned response. There was no way she was going to be able to do that. "I'm supposed to write him a letter, I guess. I just... it seems so impersonal. I don't even know where to start. I don't want what he said to be right but I can't just... I can't say I don't accept it and then turn around and do exactly what he asks me to do."

Tikki smiled softly. "It doesn't have to be a note, Marinette."

"I can't go to his place," she explained, wanting very much to pull her own hair in frustration. "If he's got a bodyguard watching Adrien all the time, it's safe to assume his home is even more a fortress than before. I'd never get Adrien truly alone and it might just make things even worse!"

Tikki giggled, a peculiar response, her smile growing as she circled the desk and flew instead over to the vanity beyond, hinting her way towards the little drawer where two pieces of jewelry were hidden away. 

It was crazy.

It felt wrong to even consider it.

But then again, what else could she do?


End file.
